British Prime Minister David Cameron (right) joins Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf (left) and Afghan President Hamid Karzai at the Presidential Palace in Kabul for a trilateral meeting Thursday. Cameron called on Afghanistan and Pakistan to make a joint effort against insurgents in the two countries' border zone. — APKABUL — British Prime Minister David Cameron called on Afghanistan and Pakistan on Thursday to make common cause against insurgents in the two countries' border zone. He spoke in Kabul in a visit aimed at adding British weight to American diplomatic attempts to get Pakistan to become more cooperative in ending the Afghan war. Cross-border fighting and stalled negotiations with the Taliban were the main topics of discussion at a three-way meeting between Pakistani Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Cameron. The British, US and Afghan governments have long criticized Pakistan for not doing enough to stop cross-border attacks. Many insurgents groups are based in safe havens in Pakistan's lawless tribal areas along the Afghan border. Islamabad also charges that insurgents cross the border from the Afghan side and attack Pakistani security forces. “The terrorists that are trying to wreck Afghanistan are by and large the same terrorists that are trying to wreck Pakistan," Cameron said. “We should be together in one single fight." Britain's involvement could help America's effort to push Pakistan to crack down on the safe havens and also to use its connections with some Taliban leaders to promote peace talks. “We are making progress, and this is our fight as much as your fight and the Pakistanis' fight," Cameron said. A joint statement issued after the three leaders met said they would work together to eliminate terrorism and agreed that peace in Afghanistan would help Pakistan's security. Pakistan is facing its own insurgency and has been fighting militant groups, mostly in its tribal areas. Pakistan's Ashraf, who took office last month, and Karzai also held separate talks together. In the statement, Karzai stressed the need for a political solution to end a war that has lasted more than 10 years, and said talks should include the Taliban and other insurgent groups. It added that the talks should be led by Afghanistan, facilitated by Pakistan and supported by Britain and other countries. The Taliban has refused peace talks with Karzai, calling him a puppet of the United States. Instead, they have held talks directly with American officials. They broke off talks earlier this year, saying the US reneged on a promise to release Afghan prisoners from Guantanamo Bay. The talks have so far shown no signs of restarting. Pakistan is seen as key to breaking this impasse because of its historical ties with the Taliban. “The peace process is the most important of our pursuits for Afghanistan. It remains the highest priority," Karzai said. Karzai said having talks among the leaders of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Britain was Cameron's idea and that there had been minister-level meetings among representatives of the three countries. “Today is the first time that we are sitting at the high-level of the leaders," Karzai said. “The purpose of the meeting is to find an effective way to battle against terrorism and what role Pakistan can play now in the security situation in the region and the peace process." Cameron had for some time hoped to bring together Pakistan and Afghanistan's leaders in an effort to boost trust between the two sides. Officials hope Thursday's talks will lead to more regular meetings between Karzai, Ashraf and their militaries to work on jointly tackling insurgents. The Kabul meeting marked the end of Cameron's two-day visit to Afghanistan, intended to guide decisions on how fast Britain will withdraw its 9,500 troops before international forces leave by the end of 2014. In separate talks with Karzai, Cameron discussed the drawdown. He also planned to stress the need for “credible, inclusive and nationwide" presidential elections in 2014, his spokeswoman said, on customary condition of anonymity in line with policy. Cameron also met in Kabul with the top US commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen, who gave him a positive message on the country's overall security picture as they discussed recent violence in northeastern Afghanistan. Allen said the process of handing security duties to local forces was progressing well, though the Afghan army still needs to improve its command and control capabilities, Cameron's spokeswoman said. Cameron rejected claims Afghanistan could be mired in violence once foreign troops withdraw, insisting local forces are prepared to handle insurgents. Although fighting has not abated in the south, it has escalated in the east where coalition forces have focused their efforts against insurgents. NATO said two of its service members were killed by roadside bombs in eastern Afghanistan. It provided no other details, but the killings brought the death toll among foreign troops to 27 so far this month and 242 this year. In other violence on Thursday, a roadside bomb in northwestern Faryab province killed eight civilians and wounded six others, a spokesman for the governor said. They were in a mini-bus headed on a shopping trip one day ahead of the start of the holy month of Ramadan. NATO also denied that it had contracted 24 fuel tankers destroyed on Wednesday by a bomb in northern Samangan province. — AP
